Radio-active matter and process of making same.



No. 787,928. PATENTED APR. 25, 1905. H. LIEBER.

RADIO-ACTIVE MATTER AND PROCESS, OF MAKING-SAME.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 12, 1904.

5 "l f s 1 STATES Patented April 25, 1905.

HUGO LlEBER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

RADBO ACTEVE MATTER AND PROCESS OF MAKENG' SAME.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No, 787,928, dated April 25, 1905. Application filed March 12, 1904. swarm. 197.838.

To an whom it may conserve:

Be it known thatI, HUGO LIEBER, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement .in

Radio Active Matter Impregnated with Thorium Emanations and Process of Making Same, of which the follow ng is a specification. This lnvention relates/to emanatlons from a radio-active substance.thoriu m-- and has for its object a process or method of impregnatingmatter having cohesive particles with thorium ernanations, thereby rendering the matter radio-active, and the production by means of the process of a new article of manufactureto Wit, radio-active matter having cohesive particles impregnated with thorium em'anations, as hereinafter more particularly described. Solids and fluids constitute f mat; ter having cohesive particles, and by the expression matter having cohesive particles I intend to include solids and liquids, but not gases, the particles of w icli have no cohesion. My invention is illu. trated in the drawings forming part of'this specification. Fi ure 1 is a view in elevation of apparatus suitable for carrying out the process of my invention. Fig. 2 is a view from above of the apparatus shown in Fig. 1. l

In the drawings, A is a glass vessel contain' ing thorium oxid and resting in a bath of sand B. U is a Bunsen burner by means of which heat may be applied to the bath of sand B, and thereby to the thorium oxid contained in theglass vessel A, in order to facilitate the emanating or the giving ofl by the thorium of the thorium emanations. I,

D is a thermometer which'indicates the temperature to which the thorium oxid is heated. E is a bulb used for blowing a current of air through the tube F into the glass vessel A, thereby causing the thorium emanations to pass out of the glass vessel A and through the tube G into the vessel H. The vessel H is a vessel into which is put the water or other liquid or substance to be impregnated with the thorium emanations, and thereby to be rendered radio-active. The thorium emanations being blown with a current of air from I rays.

.be secondarily radio-active.

the glass vessel A through the tube G into the water, liquid, or other substance contained in the vessel H comeinto intimate contact with the water, liquid, or other substance and'im pregnate it.

Thorium is ,a radio-active substance, and it emits and radiates rays called Becquerel particles. These thorium emanations of gaseous particles are characterized and defined, first, by their radio activity evidenced by their power to discharge an electroscope and In addition to the emission of Becquerel rays thorium gives off emanations of gaseous byother phenomena of radio-activity; sec- 0nd; by their capability of being transferred, as when blown .by a current of air, from one vessel'into another, where they produce the same effects as they previously produced in the first vessel; third, by their capability of being reduced at a low temperature, like other gases, to a liquid, too small in quantity, however, to admit of measurement, and, fourth, by various other phenomena. The radio-activity of the thorium emanations is capable of measurement. The thorium emanations possess the quality of ionizing the air or other gas, rendering it a conductor of electricity.

If the gaseous particles constituting the tho-. rium emanations are left in a closed vessel, a radio-active substance is soon deposited upon the inner surface of the vessel; being shown by its radio-activity. As electricity is definitely known by its qualities and effects, so the thorium emanations are definitely characterized and defined by their qualities and effects produced by their presence.

The'emanations from thorium can be utilized to render other substances radio-active. Other substances rendered radio-active by means of thorium emanations may be saidto I have discovered that other substances can be impregnated with thorium emanations, according to the process of my invention and can thereby be rendered persistently radip-active or radio-active in such degree that they retain their radioactivity for a considerable length of time.

A satisfactory manner of obtaining the emanations from thorium and of utilizing them in carrying out my invention is by heat- /1 0O ing thorium oxid below red heat and then by means of an air-current or similar device blowing the emanations into the matter to be impregnated and made radio-active or otherwlse bringing the thorium emanations into intimate contacttherewith. Heat is'preferably The emanations blown into the matter to be,

impregnated and made radio-active or otherwise brought into intimate contact therewith combine with the particles: of the cohesive matter throughout its mass. 'The method of blowing the'emanations into the matter is,

given merely as one satisfactory manner of carrying out the principle of my. invention, which consists in impregnating the matter to be made radio-active with thorium emanations, or,'in' other words, [in combining the thorium emanations with the particles of the matter to be made radio-active throughout themass of the matter.- In the case of --solids it may be necessary to'heat the solid to a liquid form and to blow the emanations'into the matter while in the liquid form, or if the solid substance is in a comminuted condition the thorium emanations may be brought into contact and combined with the particlesofothe solid, substance throughout its mass by blowing the thorium emanations into and throughout the particles of the solid substance Other methods can be employed; but whatever may be the particular manner adopted to carryout the principle of my invention the essential feature is that the thorium emanations shallbe brought into intimate contact with the matter to be rendered radio-active and: shall impregnate the matter, or, in other words, shall combine with theparticles of the matter throughout the mass of the matter. {Elie thorium emanations being blown into or otherwise brought into intimate contact with the.

water, liquid, or other substance to be impregnated the water, liquid, or othersubstance is thereby impregnated with the thorium emanations andrendered persistently .radio-active that is, radio-active to such an extent and degree that the radio-activity will be retained for a considerable length 0 time and will enable theradio-active water, iquid, or other substance to be used for many purposes. Substances rendered secondarilyradioactive through impregnation by thoriumemanations according-to my invention are beneficial and useful-for example, in'the treatment of disease and in the preservation of food.

Instead of 1 Water and other liquids, salve, and paste thus the treatment of disease and for other pur poses. Food productssuch as canned foods, meat, beef extracts, and other preparedfoods,

serves, and the like, thus made radio-active are preserved, and other decomposible matter thus made radio-active is preserved firomdecomposition and decay. I do not, however, claim specifically in this application radio-active salves and pastes impregnated with tho- A rium emanations, since such salves and pastes me on the 17 th day of 'June, 1904, Serial-No.

application preserved organic matter or preserved organic food,'since such preserved-organic matter and preserved organic food are claimed in another application, filed by me on the 17th day of June, Y 1904, Serial No. 213,047. V

I am aware that the thorium salts have been dissolved in water previous to my invention, and such is not my invention. Whena salt of thorium is dissolved in water orother liquid, the thorium salt permeates the water or other liquid in which it is dissolved. ,VVhen,

described thorium emanations are given off, the thorium emanations are separate and free from the thorium from which they were obtained, and when the thorium emanations 'so obtained are, brought into intimate contact -'with'the matter to 'be rendered radio-active and impregnate the matter, combining with 'of thematter, the matter so impregnated is free from the thorium from which the thorium emanations were obtained and is radio-active by reason of the emanations or gaseous particles separated from the thorium by which they were given off and combined with the particles of the matter throughout its mass.

What I claim is 4 1. Radio-active matter, consisting of matter tions in combination with the particles of the matter throughout its mass, the matter being free from the thoriumfrom. which emanations were obtained and radio-active by reason of the thorium emanations in combination with the particles of the matter throughout its mass, substantially as described. I

v 2. Radio-active liquid, consisting of a liquid and thorium emanationsdn combination with the particles of the liquid throughout its mass, the liquid being free from the thorium from whichemanations were obtained and radio-active by reason of the thorium emanations in combination with the particles of the liquid throughout its mass, substantially as described. v a

" 3. Radio-active water, consisting of water and thorium emanations in combination with however, according to my invention as above.

the particles of the matter throughout the mass having cohesive particles and'thorium emanamade radio-active can readily be applied in milk, cheese, and cream compounds, pre

are claimed in a separate application filed by 213,046; neither do Iclaim specifically in this i the particles of the water throughout its mass, the water being free from the thorium from Y which emanations were obtained and radioactive by reason of the thorium emanations in combination with the particles of the water throughout its mass, substantially as described.

4. The method of rendering matterv having cohesive particles radio-active, consisting in heating thorium below red heat, then separating the thorium emanations from the thorium, and then impregnating the matter with the thorium emanations by combining the thorium emanations free from the thorium from which they were obtained with the particles of the matter throughout its mass, substantially as described.

5., The method of rendering matter having cohesive particles radio-active, consisting in heating thorium belowred heat and then embodying the thorium emanations within the scribing witnesses.

HUGO LIEBER.

Witnesses:

FRANK E. (law, A. J. STRACHAN. 

